Computer Gaming is getting more and more popular every year, the real "Superstars" are getting lots of attention in the Media, and in some Asian countries, they are treated like a Star Athlete is here in the USA. Europe is also very heavily into the Gaming scene, possibly more so than the US.

I have been playing Return To Castle Wolfensten, and the follow up Enemy Territory since they have come out, and have been hooked ever since. It is still my favorite Multiplyer game to this day, I have yet to find another game to match it!

I downloaded a few gaming "Movies" a long time ago, and recently got the urge to check them out again, and my all time favorite (Awesome Music, Fragging and Trick jumping) was made by a Clan known as "APICAL" who won the European Cup 2 years in a row.

You can Download it below, it is a rather large file (175MB) but it's worth it!
The opening sequence still gives me chills!

http://returntocastlewolfenstein.fil...alypse_II;8370

I did a little research and found one of the guys heavily involved in making it, and decided to Interview him.

Game Name: Feuersturm
Age: 21
Occupation: Student
Location: Finland

1. The Movie:


How long did it take to make the movie, was it something that was done in a weekend, or just put together as time allowed?

For what I can remember, we started working on Apicalypse 2 with Mehukatti right after the first one so the creation process lasted a few months. We spent a lot of time on servers figuring out new trickjumps etc.


Who came up with the idea for the opening scene? (What was the Inspiration)


I came up with the opening scene. Heh, I was even the "director" and "cameraman", and it took about 1-2 hours to get the demos right. It was something we wanted to use since we clearly divided the movie into several parts, so naturally an opening introduction was a fitting idea. We shot the small intros for each section this way also.

What part was the most difficult? (Editing, Music or ???)

Mehukatti did all the editing and technical work with the demos etc. I did some of the graphics such as the logo and basically it was Mehu and me who thought the whole movie through - what it was supposed to sound and look like. I would have to say Mehukatti's part with working the demos into
.avi format and editing the whole thing must've been a huge load of work.


2. The European Cup

How do you prepare? (Lots of team practice or ???)


Yes, we try to practice monday-thursday each week. Recently we haven't been able to play that active but we're getting back on track as soon as we can.


Anything go wrong that almost cost your team the Cup (Losing a key player, equipment problems, etc.)


Lack of concentration is just as bad as playing without a key player. We try to use our main-lineup for each match, but equipment problems haven't been much of a problem. One player is getting a new connection and has been away for some time now, but nothing critical.

What makes the difference between a winning team and a losing one? (What mistakes have you noticed the other teams making)


On the highest level of play, teamplay makes the difference. And synchronizing actions, medicwork, spawnraping...stuff like that. Though we have been able to be victorious with just sheer aiming power as well. If I see a team making mistakes it's usually the ones we may do sometimes too - lack of teamplay and concentration.


3. Gaming


Define "Game Awareness" as you see it.


To be able to be aware of your teammates and your enemies' movements. To know when to do what and when to do a planned class-change for example. The medics need to be fully aware of the revives, etc, since getting the team back on their feet may change the course of a match totally. Being fully
aware of all things in the heat of the battle isn't really simple, because it's relatively easy in ET for, say, a panzer to camp the spawn without anyone noticing it.


Favorite class and why (Medic is mine, Panzer as a back up)

Since I play Fieldops in matches then I have to say that's my favourite class but I will switch to an Engineer on planned situations as well. Why Fieldops then? Well I played lieutenant in rtcw as well so it kinda grew on me. I want to have a lot of ammo, I just don't feel comfortable with 30 rounds and a pistol. And I got the best Medics in europe covering my butt so I don't need to worry. I never played a Medic, hell I think I can't even do that.

Any favorite tips for newer players? (Leading bullets, going for headshots,etc..)


Some basic tips would be to tweak your config for visibility and optimized network settings. Lower your sensitivity enough so that your aim doesn't "wander" that much. Some prefer a very low sens for which you gotta have a good mouse that won't flip out on fast movements. A good idea is to have
your sensitivity set so, that your ch moves about as fast as your enemies do on the screen (they actually move quite fast as you may think). One thing I need to point out is the importance of the mousepad, you should have a mousepad that provides smooth motion and medium to low resistance. This helps you to track your target more easily, thus it makes you aim "better". And last but not least, the crosshair. The dot isn't in fact the best one there is, but there's no way to notice this unless you try the other ones, larger ones. I use 9, since it has a small dot which is great for shooting distant targets and it has that large cross around it which makes tracking easier on close range. It feels a lot more steady than a dot, which feels like it's bouncing out of control. You can seriously increase your amount of headshots once you get the hang of it.


4. Music


Who are your current favorite bands?


I have quite a morbid taste for music, if I mentioned any names they wouldn't really say much to anyone reading this

What type of music do you listen too when playing? (Hardcore, mellow or ??)

I'm all about metal. Mostly black and some deathmetal but also some folk-inspired stuff. I have to point out that the soundtrack of Apicalypse 2 isn't my kind of music, even if it's "metal".


5. Finland


Can you tell us something we might not know in the US about Finland?


Uhm, anyone have a Nokia phone? We made those. What else...well it's cold as hell here most of the year, but we do have a scorching hot summer too.
And from the top of my head, if you know that Pro-Gamer guy Fatal1ty, well he was here recently and was beaten in Painkiller by this Finnish guy Rat.


Are the chicks Hot and "Friendly"?

Hot, sure. Friendly, I suppose. "Friendly", I think Atlas could answer this one but I'm sure he would say "Yeeeees"

Thanks for your time!

No problem.



EDIT: I recieved an Email from him the other day, I made a few mistakes!

It apears his team broke up just before the champoinship ended, they are now competing under the clan name "Saevus"

WOW , That was nice of him to give you the interview.

Wish him and the Team all the best, and look forward to playing more of RTCW ET, maybe he can give me a few pointers, good pointers that he has given

Chicks play too? Hmm i will have to keep my "Scope" open for them

Good interview

Iron Maiden and Children of Bodom in the video - He's got a good taste of gaming music!